Anti-ageing drugs boost defences of elderly
Supplement could help fight off virus by making immune system ‘medically younger’, say scientists
ELDERLY coronavirus patients could be given drugs to make their immune system “younger” so they respond better to treatments and vaccines, a Harvard study has suggested.
Scientists say one way of protecting older people against some of the worst symptoms of Covid-19 is to give them “NAD boosters” – supplements that contain a form of vitamin B3.
During ageing, the amount of the chemical compound NAD in the body declines, which could be a “major contributor” to aggressive effects of the virus on the elderly, the study claims.
But by topping up these levels in patients over the age of 65, their immune systems will be in a better position to ward off the illness, and they will respond better to treatment and any vaccine that may be developed in the coming weeks, the research suggests.
The scientists from the Blavatnik Institute at Harvard Medical School also highlight the potential use of groundbreaking treatments, which “activate the body’s defences against ageing” by “resetting the age of cells and tissues” – making the body medically “younger” and more capable of fighting disease.
The mortality rate for those who contract coronavirus is estimated at 8 per cent among those aged between 70 and 79, increasing to just under 15 per cent for those aged 80 and over.
At the end of March, when the Government introduced lockdown in the UK, those aged over 70 were advised to limit social interaction where possible.
Thousands of elderly people have since died in care homes across the UK. A third of all coronavirus deaths in England and Wales are now happening in care homes, according to Office for National Statistics data.
The Harvard study, which is called “Why does Covid-19 disproportionately affect the elderly?” and is yet to be peer reviewed, explains: “In the aged, immune responses to vaccination are often weak or defective… Therefore, in designing vaccines against SARSCoV-2, it will be important to consider that older people may not respond as well to vaccines as young people.
“The most exciting and potentially impactful technologies to treat Covid-19 are those that activate the body’s defences against ageing.
“It may even be possible to reset the age of cells and tissues so currently high-risk individuals can respond to viral infections as though they were young.”
The paper adds that NAD boosters “have been suggested as first-line treatments against Covid-19, especially in aged patients” given the “increasing evidence that lower NAD+ levels … contribute to poor Covid-19 outcomes”.
The researchers explain that the severity of symptoms experienced by a patient depend on how their body responds to the virus.
An effective immune system response is to recognise the virus, alert the body to it and then destroy it – but these mechanisms are “known to be dysfunctional” in the elderly, the study claims. During ageing, the immune system changes in two fundamental ways which are “major drivers of the high mortality rates in older patients”, according to the research.
First, there is a gradual decline in immune function, which hampers the body’s ability to recognise pathogens and respond to them; secondly, there is an increase in “systemic inflammation”, which means the body overzealously registers the presence of a pathogen but fails to effectively respond to it.
The researchers point out there is still “much to be elucidated” about the varying effects of Covid-19 on different ages and in understanding its potential long-term impact on the body.